“There is no scenario in which these tariffs are good for Washingtonians, and don’t be fooled by the administration, Washington’s working families and businesses and the state will bear the cost of these tariffs,” Governor Bob Ferguson on the Trump Tariffs (from the Washington State Standard)
It used to be that we could count on the federal government to be a trusted, reliable partner. Medicaid, food assistance, trade policy, immigration: Washington state knew where it stood with the federal government. That trust and reliability is gone and now we face these challenges with uncertainty.
This is what we know: The Trump Tariffs are costing small businesses and communities billions across the country, with an estimated impact of over $2 billion to Washington state. Inflation continues to make it harder and harder to pay for basic necessities, like groceries and medicine. Families are hurting, and Republicans in Congress only made things worse by passing the Trump “Big Beautiful Bill” — H.R. 1.
Because of H.R. 1, about 300,000 Washington residents are seeing a spike in their health insurance premiums. Around 180,000 Washingtonians will lose their Medicaid coverage. And food assistance for 900,000 Washington residents is threatened, meaning even more people going hungry every day. That was a choice Congressional Republicans and President Trump made with their new law, and Washington residents and families are paying for it.
House Democrats will never give up on Washington families. Washington must be a place where all families can prosper and thrive. Where children can get a world class education and people can afford college and access to training for good-paying jobs. And where homes are affordable to anyone.
That is why we are focused on how we can prioritize a budget that reduces harm. We’re also passing meaningful policies that address home costs (like housing, utilities, and food), strengthen workers rights so that their pay keeps up with costs, and keeps costs reasonable for medical records and preventive services.
Below are some of the ways House Democrats are addressing affordability for Washington families at the state level.
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Improving pet insurance coverage (HB 1078)
Pets are a part of our family, and we want them to be cared for. Too often, pet insurance companies cancel or refuse to renew policies when a pet gets old or gets sick. HB 1078 would prevent insurance companies from doing this. When you pay into a plan for years, you expect to get coverage when it is truly needed.
Banning Noncompete Agreements (HB 1155/SB 5437)
Banning noncompete agreements. Noncompete agreements deny workers the chance at improving their financial status and happiness at work. Whether it’s taking a new job with better pay or leaving to start your own company, opportunities to pursue your passion shouldn’t be blocked by your old job.
Local tax remittance for affordable housing (HB 1717/SB 5591)
Boosts affordable housing supply by authorizing cities and counties to create a local sales and use tax remittance program for developers of affordable housing units.
Financial Relief from High Energy Costs (HB 1903)
Creates a statewide program to provide financial relief to low-income residents facing escalating energy costs.
Establishing Land Banking Authorities (HB 1974/SB 6214)
Authorizes land banks to acquire and manage land for affordable housing, addressing one of the biggest barriers to building homes—the high cost of land—so communities can better meet local needs and serve low- and moderate-income families.
Establishing the preK Promise Account (HB 2159/SB 5872)
Using a general donation from The Ballmer Group to fund 10,000 Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) seats over the next 10 years.
Preserving access to preventive services (HB 2242/SB 5967)
Ensures access to preventive health services without out-of-pocket costs for patients.
Encouraging permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters (HB 2266/SB 6069)
Streamlines the permitting processes and provides consistent treatment across jurisdictions. Will lower development costs and facilitate the prompt delivery of safe, dignified, and stable housing, resulting in less visible homelessness and alleviating the state’s housing crisis.
Prohibiting negative use restrictions on former grocery stores and pharmacies (HB 2294)
Removes outdated restrictions that keep grocery stores from reopening in vacant commercial spaces. Restores fair competition, reduces artificial scarcity, and lowers prices for families without requiring public spending.
Expanding access to solar panels and EV chargers (HB 2296/SB 6050)
Allows people to install meter-mounted devices which enable them to connect new loads like solar panels or an EV charger without having to spend thousands to upgrade their electrical panel.
Keeping insurance premiums manageable by combatting insurance fraud (HB 2394/SB 6031)
Insurance fraud drives up costs for everyone by increasing insurance premiums. This bill gives our state Office of the Insurance Commissioner more resources and modern tools to help catch and prosecute fraudsters and hold scammers accountable.
Going after wage theft & holding employers accountable so workers are paid what they earned (HB 2478/SB 6058)
Gives Labor & Industries more flexibility to investigate wage theft and hold employers that are not in compliance accountable. It strengthens enforcement against wage theft and ensures workers actually get the pay they earned.
Speeding up wage recovery efforts for workers (HB 2479)
Helps workers get the pay they’re owed by strengthening how the state investigates wage theft and creating a new wage recovery program, so workers aren’t left waiting months or years for relief.
The Fair Pricing and Transparency Act (HB 2481/6312)
This bill protects consumers from unfair pricing by banning “surveillance-based” price setting — these are practices that use data like a person’s location, shopping history, or online behavior to quietly charge different people different prices for the same groceries. The bill also strengthens price transparency so customers can clearly see what they’re being charged at the shelf and at checkout. Read about one company’s AI-enabled pricing experiments from Consumer Reports.
Protecting Washington families from data center costs (HB 2515/SB 6171)
Requires large energy-intensive facilities like data centers to pay the full costs and risks of their electricity use rather than shifting those costs onto households and small businesses through higher utility bills.
Medical debt interest rates (SB 5993)
Limits interest charges on all new and unpaid medical debt to 1 percent.